[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 701 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>






118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 701

Encouraging further deepening and broadening of the Abraham Accords on 
occasion of the third anniversary of their signing to continue building 
                    bridges towards a lasting peace.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 19, 2023

 Mr. Schneider (for himself, Mrs. Wagner, Mrs. Rodgers of Washington, 
 and Mr. Trone) submitted the following resolution; which was referred 
                  to the Committee on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
Encouraging further deepening and broadening of the Abraham Accords on 
occasion of the third anniversary of their signing to continue building 
                    bridges towards a lasting peace.

Whereas on September 15, 2020, the United States, Israel, United Arab Emirates, 
        and Bahrain signed the historic Abraham Accords;
Whereas on December 22, 2020, Morocco, the United States, and Israel signed the 
        Joint Trilateral Declaration formalizing the re-establishment of 
        diplomatic relations between Morocco and Israel;
Whereas the Abraham Accords created formal diplomatic ties between Israel and 
        the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Morocco, deepening understanding, 
        cooperation, and friendship among the countries;
Whereas the Abraham Accords marked the first instance of new normalized 
        relations between Israel and Arab countries in more than two decades;
Whereas the leadership and success of prior accords between Israel and Egypt in 
        1979 and between Israel and Jordan in 1994 paved the way for creating 
        formal diplomatic ties with other Arab and Muslim-majority countries;
Whereas the Abraham Accords shattered barriers and reduced the prospect of armed 
        conflict, improved ties between Israel and neighboring countries, and 
        advanced the cause of achieving lasting peace in the Middle East, 
        including through a negotiated solution to the Israeli-Palestinian 
        conflict that ensures mutual recognition and guarantees that Israelis 
        and Palestinians live side-by-side with freedom, security, and 
        prosperity;
Whereas the Abraham Accords provide an opportunity to make tangible improvements 
        in the lives of Palestinians, including increased multilateral 
        investment in the Palestinian economy among signatory countries of the 
        Abraham Accords;
Whereas continued political, economic, and security cooperation between the 
        United States, Israel, and Arab states remains vital to the prosperity 
        and security of the Middle East;
Whereas the long-standing relationship between the United States and Israel is 
        rooted in shared values and interests;
Whereas the Abraham Accords have demonstrably advanced religious freedom in the 
        Middle East and fostered interfaith and intercultural dialogue between 
        Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Morocco;
Whereas new opportunities for multilateral cooperation generated by the Abraham 
        Accords may improve the ability of the United States to meet nascent 
        threats and emerging challenges;
Whereas the Embassy of Israel in Abu Dhabi was opened on January 24, 2021, and 
        the United Arab Emirates became the first Gulf country to open an 
        embassy in Tel Aviv, Israel, on May 30, 2021;
Whereas Israel and Morocco re-opened their Liaison Offices in Tel Aviv and Rabat 
        in 2021;
Whereas Israel opened a resident embassy in Manama, Bahrain, in September 2021, 
        and the first ambassador to Israel from Bahrain assumed his post in 
        August 2021;
Whereas in March 2022, the Foreign Ministers of Israel, Egypt, the United Arab 
        Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco, and the United States convened at the first 
        Negev Summit in Sde Boker, Israel, resulting in the establishment of the 
        Negev Forum and six working groups tasked with furthering multilateral 
        cooperation in the areas of energy, education and coexistence, food and 
        water security, health, regional security, and tourism;
Whereas the Abraham Accords have catalyzed dramatic growth in trade, tourism, 
        and investment in the Middle East, benefitting the people of those 
        countries;
Whereas in January 2023, Israel's Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates stated 
        that, Trade in goods between Israel and the UAE reached a new record in 
        2022 and stands at $2,560,000,000 compared to $1,220,000,000 in 2021;
Whereas on May 31, 2022, Israel and the United Arab Emirates signed a 
        comprehensive free-trade agreement to cover 96 percent of bilateral 
        trade, amounting to approximately $1,000,000,000;
Whereas trade between the United Arab Emirates and Israel is expected to surpass 
        $10,000,000,000 within five years, economic conditions that were made 
        possible by the Abraham Accords;
Whereas trade between Israel and Bahrain increased to $24,000,000 in 2022, up 
        from $0 in 2020;
Whereas trade between Israel and Morocco increased by 160 per cent since January 
        2021, reaching a total of $180,000,000 USD by January 2023;
Whereas the Abraham Accords have facilitated direct commercial airline flights, 
        improving people-to-people ties;
Whereas on July 14, 2022, the United States and Israel signed the Jerusalem 
        U.S.-Israel Strategic Partnership Joint Declaration, which calls for a 
        deepening and broadening of the Abraham Accords; and
Whereas destabilizing developments in the Middle East and North Africa continue 
        to demonstrate the importance of the Abraham Accords: Now, therefore, be 
        it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) reaffirms the enduring and ironclad alliance between 
        the United States and Israel;
            (2) believes that the United States should--
                    (A) prioritize efforts to expand and strengthen the 
                Abraham Accords by encouraging other countries to 
                normalize relations with Israel and working to ensure 
                that existing agreements are fully implemented and reap 
                tangible security and economic benefits for the 
                citizens of those countries;
                    (B) with other signatory countries of the Abraham 
                Accords, continue to promote and develop new areas of 
                regional collaboration including maritime security, 
                defense cooperation, clean energy initiatives, water 
                and food security initiatives, and direct flights; and
                    (C) build on the Abraham Accords to help advance 
                prospects for peace between Israel and the 
                Palestinians, make tangible improvements in the lives 
                of the Palestinian people, and make progress toward a 
                negotiated solution that ensures mutual recognition;
            (3) supports efforts to increase security and prosperity in 
        the Middle East and North Africa via continued security and 
        defense cooperation in furtherance of the Abraham Accords;
            (4) encourages the expansion of the Abraham Accords to 
        include countries that do not have diplomatic relations with 
        Israel, and urges the President to take the necessary steps to 
        secure comparable agreements with other Arab and Muslim-
        majority countries; and
            (5) supports opportunities to expand economic ties between 
        the United States, Israel, and Arab states through 
        comprehensive economic partnerships and other trade 
        initiatives.
                                 <all>